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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. shower — rain
  3. object — to protest
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. scale — in music
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. land — to come down
  9. pass — a permit
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. chest — of your body
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. land — a country
  14. chest — of your body
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. scale — size or range
  17. object — a thing
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. chest — a box
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. land — ground
  23. object — an aim
  24. pass — to spend time

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com